The Ideal Off-Season

Yesterday I ran a poll asking for you to vote on your ideal off-season at the four big areas of need: catcher, first base, shortstop, and starting pitcher. The vote was meant to look at realistic options that are available to the Pittsburgh Pirates, rather than some of the options they have no shot at landing, such as Albert Pujols or Jose Reyes.

My ideal additions for each position would be Ramon Hernandez, Derrek Lee, Clint Barmes, and Chris Capuano. The voters agreed with me in all four positions.

Chris Capuano saw the most votes in the starting pitching poll, narrowly edging out Rich Harden. Capuano finished with 17.4% of the vote, while Harden finished with 17.11% of the vote. The next best option was a trade, which received 12.39% of the vote, followed by Erik Bedard with 12.09% of the vote. Paul Maholm came in fifth with 11.5% of the votes.

Clint Barmes had a much bigger lead in winning the shortstop poll. Barmes took 32.65% of the votes, a big lead over the secon...

Tim is the owner and editor in chief of Pirates Prospects. He started the site in January 2009, and turned it into his full time job during the 2011 season. Prior to starting Pirates Prospects, Tim worked with AccuScore.com, providing MLB, NHL, and NFL coverage to various national media outlets, including ESPN Insider, USA Today, Yahoo Sports, and the Wall Street Journal. He also writes the annual Prospect Guide, which is sold through the site. Tim lives in Bradenton, where he provides live coverage all year of Spring Training, mini camp, instructs, the Bradenton Marauders, and the GCL Pirates.